Poultry-feeder.



H. F. LEEUHTFUSS. POULTRY FEEDER.

APPLIGATION FILED AUG.19, 1912.

Patented July 22, 1913.

7 V wuw m/P POULTRY-FEEDER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 22,1913.

Application filed August 19, 1912. Serial No. 715,737.

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, HERMAN F. LEICHT- FUSS, a citizen of the UnitedStates, and resident of Milwaukee, in the county of ,Milwaukee and StateofVVisconsin, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inPoultry-Feeders; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full,clear, and exact description thereof.

The object of my invention is to provide a simple and economical poultryfeeder so arranged as to prevent the poultry from scattering the feed'by sidesweeping" or billing the feeder being capable of operatingeither in suspension or at rest upon a fixed base.

Specific objects of my invention are to provide a lender in connectionwith the feed hopper whereby the grain or dry mash s prevented frombeing thrown out by side sweeping or billing of the ponltr to providedivision walls in connection with the feed troughto prevent endscattering of the feed, and to provide detachable partition extensionsin connection with the magazinc or hopper, whereby feed of differentqualities can be distributed simultaneously from the same device.

WVith the above and other objects in view the invention consists in whatis herein shown. described and claimed.

In the drawings Figure 1 represents a longitud nal sectional view of apoultry feeder of the magazine type embody-ingthe features of myinventidn, the section being indicated by line 1-1 of Fig. 2, and Fig.2, a plan sectional view of the same, the section being indicated byline 22 of Fig. 1.

Referring by characters to the drawings, 1 represents a circular panprovided with an upturned outer flanged wall 1, which wall constitutesthe outer rim of a feed trough. Seated within the pan is a pair ofrectangular division plates 3, 3, the same being centrally abutted andextending radially to the flanged edge of the pan whereby said pan isdivided into four compartments, it being understood that thesecompartments may be increased or diminished in. number as desired. Theupper edges of the division plates are provided with horizontallydisposed slots 4, which slots are arranged at equal distances from thecenter of the pan for the reception of the lower edge of an open bottommagazine or hopper 5, the lower edge of the 'hopper wall being thusplates.

supported at a predetermined distance from the bottom of the pan,whereby a feed distributing throat is formed through which the feed isdelivered by gravity to the trough. The trough is formed by the outerpan flange 1 and the walls of the hopper, it being understood that saidhopper is 50 lesser diameter than the diameter of the pan. The radialdivision plates 3,3, are also apertnred at a point intermediate of thepan flange 1. and outer face of the hop per wall adjacent to the upperedge of said These apertures serve as retainers for a wire hooped fender2, which is thread- 4 ed through the several division plates andthereafter the ends of said hooped fender are secured by soldering. Theedges of the. division walls which abut the pan flange 1 are also insolder connection whereby the parts are held rigid. It should beunderstood however that the means of securing the several parts in theirassemblage may be' varied without departing from the spirit of myinvention andns a substitute for the wire fender shown, a flat ring maybe utilized oany other suitable form of fender which will accomplish thedesired result.

Attention is called to the fact that the distance between the lower edgeof the hop per and pan bottom is predeterminedly arranged to causesullicient feedfto he forced into the trough, there being no opportunityto overflow for the reason that the lOXYQf edge of the hopper wall is atall timesnpon the same approximate horizontal plane as the upper edge ofthe pan flange. When it is desired to feed different materials I providemeans for dividing the hopper into four com 'iartments, which meanscomprises a pair of partition plates 6, G. The lower edge of thepartition plate 6, as best shown in Fig. 1, is provided with a centralslot to permit clearance of the division wall 3 which it straddles andfrom the central. point said division plate is pro- K vided with aseries of vertical slits whereby oliset tongues are formed whichstraddle the division plates 3, S that parallel said'division wall 6.The outer edges of each of the division walls are fitted snugly againstthe inner face of the hopper and from the upper edge the division wall 6there is ex tended downward to a predetermined dis tance a slot 7, whichslot forms"an 1nterlocked joint with the division plate 6, the;

same being provided with a similar slot 7' that extends from the bottomedge upward. The lower edge. of the division wall 6 is also providedwith the offset tongues for engagement with the partition plates 3 and 3which. are alined therewith.

As shown in Fig.1, the mouth of the hopper is provided with a slip-cover5 and may also" have connected thereto a suitable bail, not shown,whereby the device can be suspendedand when so suspended itis understoodthat the hopper 5 is secured to the division plates 3 and 3' in anysuitable manner so as to prevent the pan from disengagement therefrom. K

From the foregoing descri'ption it is apparent that the trough isdivided into sectional compartments by the division plates and that thefender being positioned parallel with the pan flange and outer wall ofthe hopper will so divide the mouth of the trough as to prevent thepoultry from scattering the feed by billing in a radial direction, whilethe division walls will prevent scattering longitudinally, of thetrough. This featurein practice is quite essential to the economicalfeeding of poultry due to the fact that after they have obtained thedesired amount of food their habits are such as to cause them to dipinto the trough and gether, whereby the same form a unitary de' vice,and an open bottom circular hopper in slip joint union with theaforesaid division plates, the hopper being of less diameter than thewire hoop, whereby the latter forms a tender.

3. A poultry feeder comprising a circular pan having an upturned flangedouter edge, slotted and apertured division plates detachably fittedithin the pan to form sepa-v rate compartments, an open bottom hopperhaving its lower edge in slip joint union with the division plate slots,a wire fender seated within the division plate apertures,

the same being disposed between the flanged edge of the pan and outerwall of the hop-' per to form a fender, and means for securing the wirehoop to the several division plates, whereby they are united.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto setmy hand atMilwaukee in the county of Milwaukee and State of iVisconsin in thepresence of two witnesses.

HERE AN F. LEICHTFUSH. Witnesses:

M. E. Downer, Geo. XV. YOUNG.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington. D. Q. i

